No Return

Once upon a time people had lost touch with the planet. Maybe it was the result of the millennia-old doctrine that the human species should “...be fruitful and multiply” by filling the Earth, subduing it, and achieving dominion “...over every living thing that moveth upon on the earth.” Of course if “dominion” meant the kind of destruction they had wrought there would be nothing left to have dominion over. Maybe then it was the result of a self-centered unwillingness to make decisions with the future well-being of all living things in mind. Or, perhaps it was the result of the unintended consequences of countless individual and collective decisions that had been compounded and distorted over generations, regardless of their intent. Whatever the reason, people found themselves facing numerous existential threats. That their scientists recognized and labeled the uniqueness of the time as the Anthropocene was a sad endorsement of the profound global impacts they had caused. Signs of ecological collapse were everywhere: from the invention, use, and proliferation of nuclear weapons; to the encroachment of civilizations on sensitive habitats and resulting mass extinctions and loss of biodiversity; to the introduction of synthetic materials and their pervasive use affecting human and non-human living organisms with unforeseen synergies; to the unchecked extraction and combustion of fossil fuels and the associated release of heat-trapping gases that insidiously permeated and altered the functioning of the natural systems upon which all life on the planet depended. While many had raised alarms as habitat was consumed or contaminated, species went extinct, waste accumulated in vast manmade islands in the sea, and global temperatures rose, it took the climate change protests of a 15-year-old girl named Greta sitting outside her country’s Parliament building rather than attending Friday classes to capture the world’s attention. Sadly, by that time five key opportunities to step aside from their self-destructive ways had been missed and those people had lost their way.

The first opportunity to turn back might have occurred shortly after any of their numerous errors were made. Had they acknowledged the consequences of their actions soon after they were observed, they could have managed course corrections. It’s to be expected that people will digress from an ideal path from time to time, everyone makes course corrections. But for an entire society to deny that so many fundamental flaws in their interaction with the natural environment were occurring and instead proudly and defiantly march along with blinders firmly affixed, speaks to a collective mental illness. Those with the greatest control over the collective rudder were too enamored of their dominion over the planet and too greedy to admit how dangerously far they had strayed. Correcting one’s mistake and turning away from the negative before it is too late cultivates one’s virtue.

A return to a virtuous path could have been achieved quietly and without fanfare had leaders listened to and acted on the advice of those who were observing and documenting the hazards. Had they learned the lessons of past civilizations or listened to modern science, the necessary course corrections could have been made sooner and easier. Ancient civilizations had come and gone, but the simple truth was that humanity had survived for at least 6,000 years before the Anthropocene era of existential threats became apparent within a single lifetime. And when the truth of the situation was documented by science, the knee-jerk reaction was to deny the facts, tighten the blinders, and spread misinformation and doubt so the masses would not listen to the lessons of the past or the facts of the present. Sadly, the lifeline of wisdom was not grasped. Tough decisions are made easier by following the example of good people.

Repeated attempts to return to a path of virtue did occur. Moments of clarity flashed and segments of society moved in a positive direction but inevitably the special interests of the powerful thwarted meaningful course corrections. Society was enticed by material goods and comforts into ignoring the negative consequences. Misinformation about negative consequences was spread by those with a vested interest in maintaining the status quo for material gain. Schizopocene is a more apt historic label for that period when societal was plagued by the collective mental illness of materialism. There was a disconnection from long-term value and an infatuation with illusions of value derived from ephemeral objects of adolescent entertainment. Society waffled between times of urgent concern and mobilized action only to slip back to the convenient bad habits of indulgence and waste which led to widespread depression, uncertainty, alienation, impotence, and apathy. Seek stability to overcome the dangerous position of repeatedly being lured from the light by uncontrolled desire.

Solitary returns to a virtuous way were achieved by some. Despite a collective societal illness, there were those who recognized the insanity of the path being marched upon and who made the bold, difficult, and painful choice to step aside from the madness. They of course were labeled by their former compatriots as the mad ones. Estranged from their former comforts, without societal support, and unwilling to succumb to the enticements of the familiar patterns they were escaping, they sought refuge in solitude or small pockets of enlightened self-interest. They were outcasts, weirdos, and misfits who knew that another path was necessary and attainable and sought to brighten their own corners of the world.  Surrounded by bad influences, one seeks the light alone.

The noble-hearted among them were willing to stand up and admit that mistakes had been made. For many, it took children protesting on behalf of their collective futures on what they saw as an increasingly impoverished and inhospitable planet to shake their collective minds out of their stupors,  heed the warnings, and take action. A critical step in attempting to right the ship and chart a course to a more equitable and sustainable future was to acknowledge the error of society’s way and make the tough decisions needed to correct past mistakes that trailed behind in their wakes having untold unintended consequences. When they began to accept that something is wrong, they enabled themselves to discuss the mistakes they had made and collaborate to find solutions. One objectively examines one’s faults, confesses mistakes, and resolves to overcome them.

Unfortunately, the sad reality is that people of that time missed their opportunities to turn back from the brink. As their world continued to break one extreme heat record after the other and deniers of its human-caused reality continued to hinder societal action, they charged farther and farther toward their unsustainable future. Society’s world view was out of sync with the existential threats they faced and they had missed opportune times to correct course. Collectively, their ignorance, obstinacy, closed-mindedness, suspicion and arrogant self-centeredness had superseded their noble virtues and they found themselves on the verge of relegation as another failed experiment in human history. One has missed the opportunity to turn back and must suffer the consequences.

All the signs pointed to impending ecological and societal collapse. How long would it take for the cycle to end and present another chance to effect positive change? Could they endure that long and if so, what would the world and humanity look like after the march had steadfastly continued until then? If the Schizopocene ended and people came to their senses, would they rediscover freshly scoured beaches where footsteps could not be seen or tire treads in asphalt?

The Equalizer of Fairview

During my wanderings I had heard of a saintly woman who lived in the distant city of Fairview on a high plateau. She was known as The Equalizer because she had devoted her life to the fair distribution of food, shelter, and other basic human needs. After many years of wandering, my path led to her city. As I gazed up from below, it seemed to float above the world amongst morning clouds that shrouded its walls and towers. I climbed the road to her aerie and traversed eons with every several strides. By the time I’d reached the city walls, the clouds had dissipated. Below me mountain ranges piled up against the horizon. I imagined them being weathered, eroded, and carried into river channels and eventually to the sea where sediments would form over millennia only to be lifted to continue the cycle. While mind-boggling, that geologic story of equilibrium was one I could fathom. In contrast, how a person had managed to make her vision of societal equilibrium a reality was a story I had to hear. I had so many questions to ask when I finally had the opportunity to sit and talk with the Equalizer of Fairview.

I asked her to start at the beginning. “As a little girl,” she began, “I would stand here by the garden wall and offer our surplus produce to passersby. My parents encouraged me because there was only so much we needed and the fields were bountiful. I always enjoyed seeing the smiles when I offered free food. When I got older and went away to university, I found myself drawn to questions of social equity and fairness. I knew in my heart that it was right for everyone to have their basic human needs met and I struggled to understand how there could be such huge disparities in modern society between the haves and the have-nots. I recognized that technologically, civilization had made huge strides, but socially, we were still in the Dark Ages. From my studies it seemed that people had forgotten that the path to sustained happiness wasn’t through the manic acquisition and hording of land, wealth, and material but through enduring acts of kindness, generosity, and cooperation. I knew that I would be attacked, criticized, and challenged by those who were afraid to holster their competitiveness, but I needed to see those smiles so I kept a low profile and went about my business. I didn’t need attention nor did I want any critics undermining my resolve in those early times – I just wanted what was fair for everyone.”  Difficult undertakings are easily and quickly achieved when no claims or boasts are made.

“How did you go from making people smile to creating a community?” “The summer after completing my studies I was working the garden when a traveler like yourself stopped right where you did this morning. I could tell she was tired and hungry so I offered her water and some food, and sure enough, the smile appeared. It made me feel so good to help another stranger that I convinced my parents to let her stay. She stayed for a couple weeks but then went on her way and I didn’t think much about it until others started to arrive. Soon, we were enjoying a steady stream of visitors, some who stayed for a couple days and others who stayed for months. Living on a farm, there was always plenty for everyone to contribute and plenty of room to spread out. We never asked for anything from our guests other than their mutual cooperation in being helpful to everyone else. Before we knew it, people were coming from all around to live and work here. The joy of living and working together amongst people who were focused solely on being helpful to one another was as contagious as a virus. Over the years we expanded the gardens, built a school, and provided meaningful work for an entire community who live together and share nearly everything. Inner modesty finds expression in one’s behavior which brings good fortune.

“How did you deal with your fame?  Your reputation has spread around the world, you must get visitors like me all the time?” “Yes, before long, the press arrived,” she laughed.  “There were interviews and documentaries. Fairview was called a new utopia and I was asked to travel and speak to large groups about what we were doing and how we had achieved such a harmonious lifestyle. But, it seemed to me that people wanted to laud and celebrate our achievements more than emulate what we were doing in their own corners of the world. I repeatedly told them that it really wasn’t anything special, we just all shared a common understanding of the value to helping each other and an addiction to that wonderful feeling of seeing the happiness that came from working together to help each other.” I asked her what it meant to have had international prizes and recognition bestowed upon her for her achievements and she replied, “I was happy to receive their gifts and share them with others but I urged them to stop obsessing with what we had done and start brightening their own corners of the world.”  Remaining modest despite recognition achieves further support for one’s continued efforts.

“But, this farm is only so big,” I thought out loud. “How have you managed to sustain so many?” “Yes, you’re correct,” she continued. “We eventually reached the capacity of my parents’ farm but people continued to arrive. We had to make a decision: would we limit the influx to a sustainable balance – effectively creating a waiting list of those who wanted to join us? Or, was there another way?  No one wanted to close the gates and simply maintain what we had created, so we got creative. We created craft guilds and engaged in commerce with the local community. As those interactions grew and strengthened, our neighbor’s recognized the merit in what we were doing and our footprint expanded. People saw the benefits of taking responsibility for each other’s happiness through cooperation and sharing in contrast to the myopic self-centered fixation on individual gain that has plagued society and harmed the environment for so many years. Eventually, what had been a collection of individual homesteads on a remote plateau became the thriving city of Fairview.” Step beyond modest individual behavior and cultivate balance in mind and duty to society.

 

I’d listened to the Equalizer’s story well into the day with admiration but something nagged at me about it all sounding too easy. My question was just that, “If it’s been so easy to achieve here, why isn’t everyone doing this?” I asked. “'Easy' is a relative term of course," she laughed and showing me her palms said, "these calluses attest to 'hard' work, not 'easy,' but I’ve thought about that a lot too,” she said. “That's the crux of the matter, right? The way I see it, the people who made up the original core of Fairview came here seeking something different and were willing to invest all of their belongings and energy to create something that they could share in with others. That’s a lot different than convincing people who are content in their individualistic bubbles of relative comfort that they should do something completely different. We’re not seeking to convert the world to this way of living, we’re simply demonstrating that it is viable, sustainable, and enjoyable. People need to discover for themselves that the value of giving and sharing happiness and cooperation is greater than material satisfaction. Unless they are forced to step out of their narrow-minded reality by a catastrophe, collapse, or other crises and find a different way of living, they may never discover the joy and contentment that is possible.” Corrective actions must be taken objectively and in fairness to all.

“I guess that brings me to my final question then,” I said. “What’s next?” “I’m old and not as energetic as I once was,” she replied. “But I will never tire of the joy of causing a smile to appear on another’s face. I face criticism from many who accuse me of subverting economic prosperity and the way of life that has put humans on the moon, harnessed the atom, and cured horrible diseases. I never cower from those debates and humbly submit that that same way of life has decimated cultures, destroyed ecosystems, eradicated species, and now threatens the survival of humanity. I submit to them that there is another way and I and those who understand that way will continue to demonstrate that it is possible. “Only through having the courage to objectively see ourselves in the mirror will meaningful change be achieved.”

 

It was a lot to take in. The next day before heading back down from the plateau, I sat on a bluff and gazed across the distant countryside. I thought of all the thousands of people going about their individual lives in their separate little homes with their separate joys and concerns. They were all parts of neighborhoods, communities, cities, counties, states, and farther beyond nations. The common threads being that they were all people, they all depended on the same earth, and we all had the same basic needs. I’d seen from The Equalizer that it was possible to achieve a productive and sustainable societal order through the sharing of material, energy, talent, and care. The common thread binding the the people of Fairview was collaboration. I wondered how many of those my eye surveyed had experienced the joy of creating something bigger than their own households. I worried that having never experienced that joy, people would never conceive of the ability to achieve anything other than personal consumption and subsistence. And, that through the struggle for that subsistence, humanity would continue to compete, fight, and harm rather than cooperative, love, and heal.  I imagined the mountains beyond eroding into a level uniform plain where extremes were equalized and a balance was achieved between all things.  Wishful thinking perhaps, but I’d seen the enthusiasm that humbleness and equity could achieve and I went in search of more.

On Leadership

It was an “October Bright Blue Weather” day. I strolled along a country road, happy to be nowhere in particular and everywhere in general. A national election of momentous import was playing out and from countryside to cityscape I couldn’t escape the constant bombardment. I’d made up my mind for whom I’d vote fully four years earlier when my country had embarrassed itself, alienated the majority of its voters, and distanced all but our worst enemies by electing a bombastic infantile egocentric con-man. It was with thoughts of his four inept and divisive years that I settled in the shade of an apple tree to think about good leadership.

There was a time in my professional career when everything fell into place. For a time, it seemed that the sun erased all shadow from wherever I placed a foot, everything I touched was golden, and both those above and below me sought my counsel. The curious thing is that that time followed immediately upon a decision I made not to pursue an egotistically-motivated leadership role that I knew would go to a colleague who was less qualified than myself. I told myself and a close friend that my motivation for seeking the position over my colleague was not motivated by ego, but I realized within days of making that statement that it was false. As soon as I released myself from the grips of pride and focused on how I could promote the greatest good, my path became clear and I felt the strength of purpose born of humility and unselfish modesty. The big idea that I had born, nurtured for many years, and been waiting for the right time to introduce to my organization as a model for our benefit and that of society at large was now ready to be unveiled. Having reaped the benefits of my good intentions and come into possession of great influence, my hope for the world came down to aligning my vision with action in six parts.

It was a heady time because my ideas and recommendations were starting to receive serious attention. At the same time, the ideas were relatively new and I had not yet received any meaningful challenges to their relevance or feasibility. I knew that having arrived at this fortuitous time by forgoing my pride, the initial steps along this new path had to be taken with equally pure intent to avoid stumbling. I’d heard it said that “no pride, therefore no harm” and I was determined to avoid missteps. I decided to let the ideas speak for themselves and trusted that others would agree that I was on to something when they read my explanation of how the ideas were applicable to the many diverse stakeholder groups our organization served. Stage 1: One who is in great possession without pride has made no mistake.

Having equipped myself with the proper frame of mind and unveiled my idea publicly, my next acts were to recruit helpers and supply them with the wherewithal to convey the idea to others. It felt like I was organizing an orchestra of volunteers who all shared the desire to be a part of performing my masterpiece. And, while I knew in my heart that the piece I’d written was my best work, I knew that like any creation, in time it would be open to interpretation and take on a life of its own. Nevertheless, I was pleased to be conducting what I felt was the most beautiful and complicated of musical scores as performed by everyone from novices to virtuosos for an audience ranging from skeptics to admirers. As the music wafted throughout the organization, I was rewarded by inquiries from others who sought to add to the happening in whichever ways they were able. I welcomed them all. Stage 2: Resources and helpers abound – go for it!

While my idea was novel to my organization and still somewhat unfamiliar to many people, I by no means claimed ownership or exclusivity. Quite the contrary, I did what I could to publicize what, why, and how we were doing it and encouraged others to explore how the ideas resonated within their own organizations. In my mind, the more people and organizations that embraced these ideas and aligned their values and behaviors with them, the sooner we’d achieve the much-overdue and long-awaited paradigm shift that might just avert the greatest existential threat of the Anthropocene. Stage 3: Being generous with one’s abilities and possessions benefits all.

It was hard at times to avoid feeling left out of the decision-making cadre of the organization. While I’d held more central roles in the past, in recent years others had been assigned to positions that I once held or aspired to. I felt marginalized by the senior leadership of the organization and considered leaving the organization on several occasions. Each time, I managed to shun envy and quell my pride. I kept my distance with professional courtesy from those in power and saw from that vantage point the weaknesses of their leadership styles. My unchallenged technical expertise and my indisputable seniority, while not tangible, were my most valuable possessions. With them I had the authority to focus on the important business at hand and avoid the distractions that come with power and responsibility. Stage 4: Shunning envy and the temptation to dwell on the riches of others, one remains focused on what is important.

I don’t know if I was what would be called a charismatic leader at that time: maybe it was me, maybe it was their friends, maybe they were just curious.  For whatever reason, people wanted to be a part of what we were doing. I was straightforward about the challenges before us and the consequences of inaction. Perhaps it was my sincerity and honesty that was inspirational. Maybe I just scared them all into action. Whatever the cause, I knew that as the leader of the initiative, I had to play the role. To that end I strived to present an even and professional demeanor at all times. Stage 5: Keeping presumption in check through dignity, one’s sincere benevolence shines through to inspire others.

That was a time of great progress. It seemed that those around me aligned their priorities in accordance with the good. Perhaps it was the fact that as a society we had just endured four years of our worst national leader in the history of our nation. I think that the racist, mean-spirited, narcissistic, xenophobic, bigoted, and disingenuous nature of our nation’s leader created a goodness void that people were ready to have filled. I stepped into that void in my small corner of the world with generosity, humility, and the ability to demonstrate that society could coexist in harmony with the natural environment. After all the pettiness, divisiveness, and buffoonery, I think people were nostalgic for some compassion, kindness, and honesty. People were ready to rebuild what he had helped destroy and I helped them feel like they could take matters into their own hands and make a difference again. Stage 6: At the height of power one remains modest, devoted to the good, and appreciative.

As I laced my boots and prepared to resume my trek I thanks the thoughtful person who had planted the trees there and the caring ones who had tended them. I recalled Lao Tzu’s thoughts on leadership:

The best rulers are those whose existence is merely known by the people.
The next best are those who are loved and praised.
The next are those who are feared.
And the next are those who are despised.
It is only when on does not have enough faith in others that others will have no faith in him.
The great rulers value their words highly.
They accomplish their task; they complete their work.
Nevertheless, their people say that they simply follow Nature.

The true art of good leadership seemed to me to be the ability to be perceived not as leading but simply unleashing the potential of the people one aims to help. Being helpful to others in whichever ways one is able demonstrates a willingness to see beyond one’s own ego and be of service. Leadership is not as much about having others follow as it is about providing the means for others to be empowered to grow, explore, discover, and learn for themselves. Good leaders guide rather than dictate. We must keep the ego in check, focus on the service of others, and recognize that one’s success is often due to the collective efforts of others. In such situations, we’d do well to recall the Chinese proverb: “One loses by pride and gains by modesty.”

#ClimateStrike

I was worried as I arrived at Pittsburgh’s version of the global climate strike with a friend at about 11:40 on a beautiful Friday morning the 20^th of September 2019.  I was worried that the Pittsburgh region wasn’t going to make me proud.  I’d already seen the massive crowds assembled in Brisbane, Luxembourg, and other large and small cities to the east across the ocean that Greta Thunberg had just weeks before traversed in a zero-carbon emissions sailboat to help focus global attention on the climate crisis.  I didn’t expect Pittsburgh to mobilize anywhere near the numbers who were rallying with Greta in New York City that morning, but I’d hoped to see school buses convoying into the downtown, hordes of people streaming with signs toward the rally point, and streets cordoned off by police cruisers.  Instead it was quiet and I was feeling both embarrassed that our turnout might not measure up and glad that my friend and I added two to the small crowd that was gathering.

As we made our way to the Climate Reality Project table where protest signs were available, we were shocked to hear two professionally-dressed older white men confronting the teenager who stood by herself behind the table.  They were accusing her of “child abuse.” They said it wasn’t right to be frightening children with unfounded worries and they insisted that she present facts to support claims that there’s a crisis.  I’d seen both these guys around town in my professional capacity and I wasn’t surprised to hear the venom coming from two global warming deniers.  I was surprised though to see them ganging up on a youth volunteer at a peaceful demonstration.

Playing a “child abuse” card seemed odd.  Did they not see the irony in accusing a teenager of child abuse when it was clearly they who were abusing this young person’s rights to peacefully assemble?  Later, my friend discovered that the conservative, Washington Examiner, had run a piece by Tiana Lower on 8/29/19 wherein Greta’s parents along with “climate alarmists” and the media were accused of child abuse.  The argument goes that Greta’s “stage-parents” are milking her “clinically diagnosed obsession” with the climate crisis as a way to regain the celebrity they enjoyed before Greta’s mission overshadowed their show business careers.  Lower concludes that, “Conservatives shouldn't mock her. They should worry for her. Social media has made it too easy to prop up children as moral authorities — even children especially predisposed to crack under the pressure.”

If anyone is cracking under pressure, it’s President Trump who suffered Greta’s scorn after mocking her impassioned speech to the UN.  The full transcript of her remarks can be found here, but to appreciate the intensity and passion with which she delivered them, do yourself a favor and listen (along with the more than 3 million others who had done so as of 9/23/19).  That the climate-change-denying leader of the largest economy on the planet (and the nation most responsible for this crisis) would crack is understandable after being schooled by Greta that, “for more than 30 years, the science has been crystal clear” and that,

 “…you are still not mature enough to tell it like it is.  You are failing us. But the young people are starting to understand your betrayal. The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us, I say: we will never forgive you.”

In response, the president tweeted: “She seems like a very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future. So nice to see!”  The Commander in Chief of the most powerful nation on the planet feels it’s necessary to mock a 16-year old from Sweden?  With leadership like that, the mindset of the two thugs I observed attempting to bully the young climate strike volunteer is sadly understandable.

I’m glad my friend and I were there to observe and intercede.  Not that the volunteer really needed our help, it was just embarrassing to see and I guess we felt that two more older white guys entering the fray on the side of climate justice might help balance the equation.  They tired of having to tangle with people their own size pretty quickly after that and stalked off, probably seeking other youngsters to abuse.

But, by then, it was about noon and the crowd had grown significantly. Speeches commenced, youth leaders shared impassioned testimonials, adult supports including a member of the Electrical Workers Union voiced their support, and community and political leaders contributed to infusing the crowd with hope and action.

Then it was time to take to the streets and our march did Pittsburgh proud.  While I wish we had ten or twenty times the 500 or so who attended, we did stop traffic, turn pedestrian heads, and attract media attention.  Most importantly, we asserted ourselves as having the sovereign power that Al Gore wrote about that same day in the New York Times: 

“The people, in their true function as the sovereign power, are quickly understanding the truth of the crisis, and they are the ones who must act, especially because the president is not on speaking terms with the truth and seems well beyond the reach of reason.

This will require a ferocious attack on the complacency, complicity, duplicity and mendacity of those in Congress who have paid for their careers by surrendering their votes and judgment to powerful special interests that are sacrificing the planet for their greed.  To address the climate crisis, we must address the democracy crisis so that the people themselves can reclaim control of their destiny.”

To “reclaim control of their destiny” we all need to engage politically and reassert our sovereignty.  We do that by reevaluating, rethinking, and empowering ourselves with action.  As Reverend Jim Magaw said in a recent sermon to the Unitarian Universalist Church of the South Hills,

 “I have decided that I’d rather be part of a movement making history instead being pushed around by it… I will speak out in whatever way I can to point out the ways in which our leaders and our social, political and economic systems are continuing to cause great harm to people who are marginalized and oppressed and great harm to our planet, which is at risk of becoming uninhabitable in just a few generations because of our own human irresponsibility and recklessness…And I will act in such a way as to turn away from despair and turn toward hope.

…the only way to turn toward hope is to act. In the words of Greta Thunberg, “Once we start to act, hope is everywhere. So instead of looking for hope, look for action. Then, and only then, hope will come.””

The Climate Reality Leadership Corps recommends actions such as those listed below that are aimed at stimulating others to rethink what’s needed, recognize what’s possible, and help change things:

·        Contact an influencer (call, write, or meet with elected officials and community/business leaders);

·        Write letters and op-eds (whether published or not, get your message out to the media for a wider distribution);

·        Post a blog (share your thoughts, concerns, and ideas on social media or other electronic forums);

·        Publish news articles (if you have access to a publication, submit an article);

·        Participate in an event (get out, pitch in, share ideas, and engage with others!);

·        Meet with co-leaders (collaboration with others who share your passion goes a long way toward helping us persevere and have fun);

·        Mentor others (share your expertise and passion with others in training events or informal gatherings);

·        Organize an event (inspire others to come out and get involved by arranging an educational event, a workshop, a petition drive, a rally, a strike, or other activity);

·        Appear in the media (if you have access to TV, radio, or other public media formats, get interviewed and speak up!);

·        Host a webinar (get your message out to a mass audience and let it live in perpetuity); and

·        Give a presentation (this is the core action that Climate Reality Leaders are trained to deliver to groups large and small using the latest information assembled in high-quality graphics by the Climate Reality Project).

I’m hopeful that this climate strike represents a societal tipping point that will propel us toward sweeping policy changes that will have large-scale and long-term benefits.  I only hope that our collective actions come quickly enough to re-balance the already-tipping climate scale before humanity is tipped off entirely.

Climate Change, Sustainability, and Community

I’ve been thinking about behavioral change in response to environmental issues for a long time now.  Forty years ago I wrote a freshman college paper entitled, The Need for an Attitudinal Change wherein I characterized consumerism as a disease that society needed to cure for humanity to survive.  Seven years later for my MS thesis, I evaluated the potential for economic incentives to alter patterns of electricity consumption and the resulting power plant air pollution levels.  Soon after that I embarked on a career as an environmental consultant with the naive expectation that we’d clean up the environment while society got its house in order and quit making such a mess.  In the 1990s as editor of the Slippery Rock University newsletter founded by my father, The Alternator, I explored the concept of sustainability and, among other things, advocated for consumers to use their purchasing clout to help redirect social priorities toward sustainable systems.  Several years ago, I devised a “Philosophy of Sustainability” that was posted here (http://hermitorhero.blogspot.com/2012/02/a-philosophy-of-sustainability.html) wherein I identified six behaviors I feel are key to society achieving sustainable lifestyles: harmony with natural processes, reverence and respect for all things, moderation, cooperation, conservation, and taking responsibility.

I feel like my personal choices and actions have been consistent with the principles I’ve espoused for all these years, but that they have not been as impactful as I wish they’d been.  Intellectually, I embrace my Philosophy of Sustainability, but I’m not satisfied that my actions speak as loudly as my words.  My wife and I have taken many steps over the years to lessen our environmental footprint but as it becomes more and more apparent that society’s consumption of fossil fuels and production of plastic junk is far from abating, I’m asking myself how I can do more.

In the fall of 2017 I attended Al Gore’s Climate Reality training with the hope of stimulating not only myself, but other people as well.  While I’m on track to complete the requisite number of leadership activities I committed to perform this year and those actions may have inspired some others to take action, I’m looking to do more.

With that challenge in mind, I helped to create a Green Team at my office of 350 environmental engineers and scientists this year.  With the interest of a core group, the support of office management, and the guidance of an excellent Playbook produced for the Sustainable Pittsburgh Challenge (https://www.spchallenge.org/) we are working through a variety of self-selected goals such as reducing our use of plastic and Styrofoam, more effective paper recycling, and establishing baselines of energy use and transportation choices with accompanying improvement targets.

These are all good things and it’s rewarding to be working with young folks who are enthusiastic about sustainability.  But, at the same time I’m reminded of articles I published in The Alternator decades ago that listed simple things that people can do at home to be more sustainable.  Item 2 from a list published in Volume 8, No. 4 (Summer 1994) was “buy in bulk and take your own shopping bag.”  While some people recognized that single-use plastic bags were unsustainable way back then, it took thirteen years for San Francisco to become the first jurisdiction in California to ban their use.  Then, nine years later in 2016, California became the first state to prohibit stores from providing them to customers.  So, while individually we often know what is better, societally it can take a long time to move the needle on a large scale.  And that’s just one example.  So, as I start my 60^th year I’ve been asking myself why it is that I haven’t made more substantial changes in behavior, even if my attitude has been in a sustainable frame of mind for 40 years. 

It’s definitely not a matter of “out of sight, out of mind.”  Media coverage brings wild fires, melting ice caps, and plastic waste into our homes nightly.  I don’t have to live in a coastal area like Miami where routine high tides now flood city streets or in northern California where hotter weather has led to longer fire seasons, to know we have problems.  And even though western Pennsylvania has been largely unscathed by climate change so far, the prevalence of flash flooding has noticeably increased and the deep winter snows of my youth are long gone.

It’s also not a matter of thinking my individual actions (positive or negative) don’t matter.  I realize that the problems are the consequence of many individual decisions and that the solutions will similarly require the collective effort of many individual actions.

And, it’s not that I don’t know what to do (or what not to do)?  The things we can do lessen our environmental impacts have been known about since environmental awareness started. There have been numerous guides published over the last few decades with tips on “how to save the planet.”  But making these choices part of one’s daily lifestyles does take effort and when society makes it easier to do the wrong thing than the right thing (like using plastic straws instead of paper), it takes a conscious effort to avoid being part of the problem.  When we can make sustainability easy, more people will make those choices.  And, when society decides as a whole, like the California’s proposition on one-use bags, the decision about how to do the right thing is made for us.

Fundamentally, I think it’s a matter of insufficient incentives and disincentives.  Besides ethical and moral reasons to do the right thing environmentally, the value proposition isn’t always obvious.  Economists like Susan Meeker-Lowry (Economics as If the Earth Really Mattered, New Society Publishers, 1988); Robert Costanza (Ecological Economics: The Science and Management of Sustainability, Columbia University Press, 1991); and Hazel Henderson (Building a Win-Win World, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 1995) have helped us understand the value of protecting the environment, not just the costs.  Fundamentally, if the value proposition is between survival and incurring higher costs, then clearly it’s worth the higher cost to be sustainable.  Fortunately for now, the urgency of survival hasn’t been clear.  At the same time, it often takes a crisis for society to take significant corrective actions.

Recognizing that problems exist and that there are solutions in hand, what prevents me from implementing more positive change in my day-to-day actions?  Bad habits can be hard to change.  It’s human nature to get into patterns that are comfortable and familiar even if they’re self-destructive.  But we can break those patterns by connecting with others who share our convictions.  Working together, we can achieve a critical mass of like-minded voters who can influence the political process.  We can be influenced to make positive changes in behavior by peer pressure.

My family got me a Fitbit^® watch for my birthday.  They’ve all been using the devices for some time and have encouraged me to join the “community.”  I’ve resisted since I haven’t needed a community to help me make good choices about my exercise routines and I thought it’d be intrusive.  But now we’re all linked and I can see their daily activity levels and they can see mine.  I guess the idea is that the peer pressure helps encourage us all to do more and stay fit.  I can see some value in that.

Similarly, I can see value in being part of a Sustainability community.  That’s why the Green Team at work was formed and why Sustainable Pittsburgh developed their challenge as a fun way for businesses to work together toward common and mutually beneficial goals.  Through a points system, we’re rewarded for performing individual tasks that have been defined in the Playbook.  While the actual benefits aren’t quantified, the significance of each activity is ranked so that participants can gauge the relative value of each action.

This type of cooperative effort is exactly the type of process I’ve been looking for to feel motivated, energized, and integrated with others to make more meaningful changes in my individual, family, workplace, and community.  Maybe the next step is to develop a “Sustain-Bit” to help us all monitor and track the individual actions we take every day and how those actions really impact or benefit the environment.

Earth Day 2018

I’ve always thought of myself as an optimist. I generally “look on the bright side of life” and I seek silver linings after hardship and loss. Whether through the love of family and friends, the wisdom of ancient sages, or the solace of Nature, I find reasons to be hopeful.

Those close to me might argue that I’m more of a “neutralist.” They might point to my objective and analytical “Mr. Spock” nature around which I’ve built a science and engineering-based career. Or, they may point to my gravitation toward Eastern philosophy and my normally calm non-judgmental attitude. I tend to accept what is and adapt to situations as needed. I don’t worry much about what may be but rather attend to the things I want and need to do as best as I’m able.  Sure, I plan for the future, have hopes and dreams, and have a vision for a healthy world, but I don’t dwell on failures, shortcomings, and dead ends. The pragmatic MacGyver in me has dealt with unexpected situations enough times to have confidence that things will work out.

As this Earth Day neared, I considered how my perspective as a neutralist leaning towards optimism has shaped my reaction to environmental concerns of the day. I realized that I’m being apolitical.  Besides the typical reasons like parental and familial responsibilities, professional duties, and competing personal interests, life affords plenty of opportunities to be disengaged from the big problems like climate change, gun violence, gender rights, immigration, and a misguided Presidency. Life presents plenty of distractions and valid reasons not to be political.

What’s politics have to do with it?” you might ask.  That’s what I thought so I grabbed my copy of the wonderful Politics for Human Beings (Hummel and Isaak, Duxbury Press, 1980). There, I was reminded that “Politics is a social act to resolve the tension between human needs and social facts.”  Hummel and Isaac explain:

Social facts are old social acts that have become conditions. Social facts often frustrate human needs. For example, although people set up a corporation to satisfy their own needs and wants, as soon as their act becomes a condition, it frustrates the needs of others who share more in the pollution than in the profits created by the firm. Thus the social acts of one group of people to satisfy their own needs often frustrate the fulfillment of needs perceived by other groups. As soon as such tension between social facts and human needs is perceived, political consciousness comes into being.

So the question may be, how intense does the tension between one’s human needs and the social facts of the day have to become to inspire an individual to become politically engaged?  For a neutralist leaning toward optimism, there have been plenty of ways to rationalize inaction – the easiest being to be ignorant of what is happening. One might avoid the social facts by turning off the Twitter feed and the nightly news. Some may choose to binge on Netflix, focus on their physical health, or find peace of mind in Nature. Political leaders who advocate building walls and closing borders, isolating ourselves and being suspicious of strangers, and bullying those who present inconvenient facts encourage the hermits among us to find a quiet places to avoid being engulfed in the pervasive and stupefying societal miasma being spewed.

But by avoiding the situation, we allow it continue unchecked.  We accept and endorse through our silence.  We keep the virtue and honor of our higher ideals to ourselves and neglect to call out the shameful and indecent behavior of others.

That’s why lately I’ve become a pessimist.

It seems to me that it’s the pessimists who push the envelope and force others out of their accepting complacency by challenging the status quo.  By definition, it’s the pessimists who see the worst in things.  By extension, I think they are less content, less accepting, less forgiving, and less agreeable than their counterparts.  They complain more, they want change, they speak up, they get pissed, and they make trouble.  I don’t see pessimists as being constantly scowling and bitter, but I do see them as being more likely to get upset about injustices and inequities than a neutralist or optimist.  My long-gone dear friend Karen Lundegaard impressed upon me the lesson that “it’s the squeaky wheel that gets the grease” as she struggled with health coverage that was insufficient to offer adequate care in her short battle with cancer.  And, while fighting for her life against a bureaucratic health-care system didn’t tarnish her positive outlook on life, it left me with a lasting awareness that if people don’t complain, systems won’t change on their own. An excellent current example of what it takes to change a system can be found in Cecile Richards’ new book, Make Trouble (Touchstone, 2018).

Changing implies that something else will be “better” for those whose needs aren’t being met. Better is a judgment call – who’s to say what is better? Society needs to make that call through political action. I agree with Michael J. Sandel who in his 4/8/18 New York Time Book Review piece on Robert Reich’s The Common Good points out that, “Against the grain of much liberal thinking, Reich acknowledges that promoting civic virtue requires being judgmental about what moral attitudes and qualities of character our public life should affirm and promote.”

But for the rare exceptions, individuals, no matter how charismatic, virtuous, sincere, well-intentioned, and honorable, have an insignificant impact on the momentum of society unless they band together in with a common cause.  The winter 2017 #Resist movement in the U.S. that emerged in response to the Trump presidency can be viewed as non-violent action in accordance with fundamental principles of what is right and fair in America. The Me Too movement, March for Our Lives, and Black Lives Matter are other recent examples of people organizing to resolve tensions between needs and social facts. Building on Reich’s point the, I’ll suggest that current conditions justify being judgmental about what behaviors and actions we need to take for the well-being of us all: whether that involves social equity, women’s rights, gun safety, racial equality, or the environment.

Another such organization is Climate Reality: https://www.climaterealityproject.org/

Having attended Al Gore’s October 2017 training in Pittsburgh with 1,400 other enthusiastic leaders, I felt some optimism that society was recognizing that current conditions and trends were leading us to an undesirable future. The 11,000+ members of Climate Reality are working to help us recognize that:

1.     Yes – we must change what energy we consume and how we consume it;

2.     Yes – we can and are changing past conditions through energy conservation, renewable energy, and the phasing out of coal-burning technologies; and

3.     Yes - we will eventually change. Change is occurring but is the pace sufficient enough? I think not and it’s for that reason that I became a Climate Reality Leader.

The reality of climate change has been accepted worldwide. Actions from the individual who chooses the most fuel-efficient modes of transportation available to the nation-states who are working to implement renewable energy economies, span a wide range of morally-driven actions aimed at resolving the tension between perceived needs and current conditions. I’m pessimistic that the Trump presidency will do anything good about Climate Change.  My objective for the year ahead is to help fuel the awareness that politically engaged people can lead our political leaders in morally virtuous directions: one critical direction being toward the societal acceptance of the realities of climate change.

Happy Earth Day!

I Ching Explorations: 1st 8 Recap

This is a recap of the 1st group of eight hexagrams according to the King Wen sequence:  numbers 1 through 8.

1:  A Time to Initiate & 2:  A Time to be Receptive

3:  A Time of Difficult Beginnings & 4: A Time of Youthful Inexperience

5:  A Time for Confident Waiting & 6:  A Time for Dispute

7:  A Time to Exert Collective Force & 8:  A Time for Unity

#1 (Ch’ien / Heaven) corresponds to a time when ideas spring forth, grow, mature and blossom with fruit, and endure through rejuvenation and continuity.  At this time, one’s energies are aligned with the cosmos and great things are possible.

But Initiating is incomplete without a Receiver.

#2 (K’un / Earth) corresponds to a time when it is appropriate to accept, submit to, and be receptive to the situation.  When one in this position is willingly led or guided by another, great freedom can result and great things can be accomplished.

Receptivity is incomplete without an Initiator.

From the union of spirit and substance (heaven and earth) come living things and all new things can find Difficulty at the Beginning.

#3 (Tún or Zhān) / Difficulty at the Beginning) denotes the early stages of life following the union of the primal forces of Heaven and Earth.  This is beginning of something new and full of potential that advances resolutely despite the initial challenges and difficulties inherent in pushing one’s way into the world.

As the infant grows, the Follies of Youth are inevitably exhibited.

#4 (Mêng / Youthful Folly) advises that with awareness of one’s lack of knowledge, trust in a wise advisor, and disciplined effort, the empty spaces in one’s knowledge can be filled like many individual pools until they flow together with purpose.

Youthful entities require Nourishment and nurturing to grow and mature.

#5 (Hsü [Xü] / Confident Waiting [Nourishment]) refers to a strategic and intentional approach to biding one’s time while a significant event, crisis, or danger passes.  Having inner certainty of achieving the goal leads to perseverance and the ability to stand up to one’s fate.  Inner confidence and unrelenting truthfulness allow one to endure and meet fate resolutely.

Waiting for something critical can lead to conflict and disputes – thus what follows is Dispute.

#6 (Sung [Sòng] / Conflict [Dispute]) conveys the intent to argue, litigate, dispute, or accuse.  These actions all involve the use of words - not physical contact.  In terms of social interactions, the conflict considered here is one of opposing opinions, beliefs, or ideologies.  The hope is that through advanced planning (so as to avoid the confrontation in the first place) or through mediation and arbitration with the aid of a mutually-respected third party, coming to blows can be avoided.

Where there is a Dispute, a multitude capable of exerting Collective Force is sure to gather.

#7 (Shih / The Army [Collective Force]) corresponds to a need to organize and activating the latent energy of individuals into a unified force.  When individuals are healthy and strong from having been nurtured and protected by a benevolent entity, their power can be directed by a wise leader to protect the whole.  Working together to overcome a challenge can have a calming and peaceful effect on the masses and lead to solidarity and Unity.

#8 (Pi [Bì] / Holding Together [Unity]) corresponds to a a time when member of a community feel united.  This is a time when individuals find value in joining together to benefit society.  A wise leader welcomes those who willingly seek to join and seeks no quarrel with those who do not.  Harmonious unity of effort leads to prosperity and the desire to store up and Accumulate.